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2009 Acura RL

138 messages,  Last post on May 14, 2009 at 12:42 PM

You are in the Acura RL Forum. Your Hosts are pat & karens

What is this discussion about? Acura RL, Future Vehicle, Sedan


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#117 of 138
Re: [vavavavolvo] by nebraskaguy
Oct 12, 2008 (12:56 pm)
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Replying to: vavavavolvo (Oct 11, 2008 8:38 am)

I see problems with this approach in light of the current economic meltdown and the availability of the TL model in AWD at a much lower msrp.
 
The TL Tech I saw a week ago had an MSRP of $40k. Once the AWD is added in, will it really have a "much" lower MSRP than the RL?
#118 of 138
Re: [nebraskaguy] by vavavavolvo
Oct 12, 2008 (4:50 pm)
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Replying to: nebraskaguy (Oct 12, 2008 12:56 pm)

Good question.
 
The Acura website lists msrp on a TL with sh-awd and Technology package at 42,235.
#119 of 138
Re: [vavavavolvo] by ocim
Oct 12, 2008 (6:55 pm)
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Replying to: vavavavolvo (Oct 12, 2008 4:50 pm)

There have been a lot of folks that have paid around 41-42K for a 50K MSRP 2008 RL. The few subtle changes Acura has made cannot possibly make folks want to pay 8-9K more for it. The way I see it, the TL-SHAWD is just about the same size now. The rear leg room, which a lot of people look at, is now identical. The new TL is somewhat lighter, slightly more HP and has better fuel economy. Why would you want to pay 50K for something old when you can have something new (and better) for about 43K.
#120 of 138
Re: [ocim] by vavavavolvo
Oct 15, 2008 (3:58 pm)
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Replying to: ocim (Oct 12, 2008 6:55 pm)

Your question is a straw man; they are different cars. Each has its own circle of people to whom it may appeal, and while the circles may overlap somewhat, they are not the same. I've sat in both 2009's and the RL definitely has more polish and elegance than the TL, while the TL has a more sporty, edgier interior that--in its own right-is very well done. Different cars. Most people would say that the new engine, retuned awd system, cooled seats, new sheetmetal and trim,shifter, etc. is a significant change. Acura says it is the most major MMC it has ever made. Also, the RL (now including the 2009 model) has five star crash test performance in every category in IIHS tests. While I'm sure the new TL will be good in this regard, its performance in crash testing is undocumented for now.
 
That said, I did think that the TL had a nicer nav screen, I think they changed the technology to create a crisper, brighter VGA display. Also, the TL has an option for uploading CD music to a harddrive....nice feature if you don't already have an iPod, which both models now have native USB support for.
#121 of 138
Re: [desert_rat] by jjacura
Oct 16, 2008 (8:48 am)
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Replying to: desert_rat (Oct 07, 2008 8:54 pm)

It's Early...but I had a black 2009 RL go past me yesterday, first one I have seen on the road. I followed it in my rear view mirror and it pulled into a parking spot so I did a yoyo and caught the owner before he left the area. (Would never have taken the time to do this during my busy working years...retirement is great ) The driver was a 45ish dapper dressed executive looking man and when I rolled down the window of my 2005 he immediately knew what I was probably going to say. He smiled and said he just bought it and traded in his RL like mine. Said he really liked it a lot. I told him before he went away to just leave his key fob so I could check it out. We laughed and as he walked away I went over and checked it out. It's a great car but it makes sense to wait 2 more years to find out what comes with the MAJOR changes to the 2011.
(don't know why you use the ID Desert Rat but we recently returned from a trip to Arizona and while there we toured the Desert Museum in Tucson... really getting to appreciate that part of the country... especially after the crazy winters we've had in Wisconsin in recent years.)
#122 of 138
Re: [vavavavolvo] by nebraskaguy
Oct 16, 2008 (10:20 am)
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Replying to: vavavavolvo (Oct 15, 2008 3:58 pm)

Your question is a straw man; they are different cars.
 
Yes, I agree. While I've always liked the TL styling and really like the 09 TL, it just doesn't have the feel of a luxury car, in my opinion, and the RL does.
#123 of 138
Re: [jjacura] by desert_rat
Oct 16, 2008 (6:22 pm)
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Replying to: jjacura (Oct 16, 2008 8:48 am)

Thanks for visiting. We love it here.(still working)
#124 of 138
Re: [nebraskaguy] by jjacura
Oct 16, 2008 (9:06 pm)
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Replying to: nebraskaguy (Oct 16, 2008 10:20 am)

Howdy Nebraska Guy! In Oct 2003 the redesigned 2004 TL was unvailed and my wife and I were visiting our daughter in Houston. My son-in-law and I drove to the nearest Acura dealer and stood in the dealer showroom checking out the all new design of the new TL. I owned a 2000 TL and was excited to see what the 2004 had to offer. I don't think I was quite ready for that body style, or that interior, and the way it felt sitting behind the wheel so we waited another year for the new RL...We heard it was going to be "All New" but for several months before the 2005 arrived, many long time potential buyers and many curious auto enthusiasts gathered in the Edmunds forum to post their thoughts on the emergence of this all new RL and it was an amazing collection of auto buffs of every kind of background; engineers, Canadians, lawyers, braggarts, car guys from all backgrounds, salesmen, jerks, gentlemen, blah blah blah. I loved coming into that forum because you could usually read 20 to 30 new posts everyday more or less and there were brilliant contributions. (Some not so brilliant ) I have never been exposed to that kind of thing before but it was truly a worthwhile experience and those of us who stayed with it learned a lot about the car and were able to make a decision whether or not it was the right luxury performance sedan for us at the time or not. In another 15 months or so I expect there may be a new RL forum that could possibly take off like the 2005 but until then I will be content to drop a regular e-mail to my good friend ACURAPHILE in New York (Whom I met in here) and compare notes on how well we are doing with our 2005's. and our lives. And I expect George will be back in here again posting supurb contributions..... after all he is only 84!
JJ
#125 of 138
Re: [jjacura] Community - ACURAPHILE by pellucid
Oct 17, 2008 (4:53 am)
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Replying to: jjacura (Oct 16, 2008 9:06 pm)

JJACURA and I have been good friends since the early Forum days in 2004. The excitment that attended the yet unknown 2005 RL was at fever pitch. We Acura buffs waited nine years for a model change, and our excitement could barely be contained. I hope that we can resurrect that enthusiasm while waiting for what has been described to be a real 'flagship' RL.
 
George
#126 of 138
Re: (jjacura) by hpmctorque
Oct 17, 2008 (5:30 am)
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Hi jjacura, I grew up in Wisconsin, graduated from the U of WI in Madison, and one of our cars is a '99 TL. It's been excellent, and we're happy with it, but I'll amplify on how I feel about Acura below.
 
I think the styling of the 09 RL is improved over the '05-'08, but my main disappointment regarding the RL is that Acura didn't take the opportunity to convert it to rear wheel drive for '05. I think Honda-Acura should have followed the Nissan-Infiniti business model in terms of drive wheel architecture; FWD for Honda and RWD for Acura, with optional SH-AWD for whichever models of each brand is appropriate. AWD makes sense in Wisconsin, but doesn't make much sense in most of the sunbelt, for example.
 
I think that Honda, even more than Nissan or Toyota, is the most promising Japanese company, from the standpoint of engineering resources and corporate culture, to take on the German luxury brands. To do that successfully, in my opinion, the Rl and TL must be RWD, and since the TSX is now a larger car, they might as well make the TSX a RWD direct competitor to the BMW 3-Series and Mercedes C-Class.
 
From what I've read, the next generation RL will probably be RWD. That's good, but also disappointing that it took so long. It suggests that Honda has lost some of the entrepreneurial spirit it used to have, and has been playing it too cautious, hoping that SH-AWD would trump RWD and RWD based SH-AWD. Or maybe they were counting on the fact that most drivers neither know nor care which set of drive wheels move the car.
 
Incidentally, FWD made perfect sense for the first two or three generation Acuras, when luxury cars had significantly less power. The game changer was when, several years ago, horsepower and torque rose dramatically. That amplified the shortcomings of FWD.
 
My conclusion is that each drive configuration involves various tradeoffs. That means that one or another is better for certain applications. Of the Japanese manufacturers, I think that Nissan-Infiniti has done the best job of sorting out the tradeoffs.

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